Less than one week into the regular season, the Atlanta Braves already have a strong case for being the biggest victims of an inexplicable call by an umpire.
Home plate umpire Bruce Dreckman essentially cost the Braves three runs in the first inning of Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies. Braves pitcher Max Fried appeared to deliver a perfect 2-2 pitch to Nick Castellanos with the bases loaded and two out, but Dreckman somehow called it a ball.
Here is the 2-2 pitch that preceded the Castellanos bases-loaded walk. Fried would have escaped the inning unscathed. Now he exits having recorded just two outs and with the Phillies leading 3-2 in the first. pic.twitter.com/UEPVxElp6s
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) March 30, 2024
Had Dreckman called the pitch a strike, the inning would have been over. Instead, Fried went on to walk Castellanos, then give up a two-run single to Bryson Stott. Fried did not make it out of the first inning, with the Phillies putting three runs on the board.
Yes, Fried still could have gotten Castellanos or Stott out. Still, he did everything he needed to do on the 2-2 pitch, which absolutely should have ended the inning. It’s tough to believe any umpire could miss a strike so badly, especially Dreckman, who has been an MLB umpire since 1996.
Ultimately, Fried is hardly the first player to fall victim to a bad call like this. The Braves also did not seem too bothered by it, as they stormed back with three runs of their own in the second to retake the lead.
